Raising AP test prices

February is prime time for AP test registration, but this year, there has been a significant change. Previously available on paper through the main office, AP test registration has taken on a new form this year with online registration on Infinite Campus. This comfort comes with a price: a four percent convenience fee.

However, this change has a purpose: FUHSD hoped to make the AP testing process a little easier. According to the Coordinator of Curriculum and Assessment Marianne Hew, when students turn in their printed AP registration forms, the office staff manually enter all information into the computer system. This process presents a large opportunity for errors, and using online registration helps minimize those errors. Using online registration, however, requires a service fee, similar to the one paid when people purchase movie tickets online.

While this change in online registration naturally may seem more convenient and attempt to save students’ time, some negative emotions have come to light regarding this issue. This is the situation for junior Ellie Chen.

“I feel like this cost change had made it more inconvenient for me,” Chen said. “I know the extra charge is a convenience fee, but it inconvenienced me because I had to go online and order the tests. I then had to go to the office, so I don’t think it saved me any time.”

Similarly, junior Alicia Chen expresses her opinion on the issue, mentioning that the online AP testing registration had caused her more difficulty than benefit with the extra four percent fee. Though four percent of a $105 AP Test is only $4, the extra costs eventually add up when students take multiple tests.

“I think that it is completely ridiculous because paying for the AP test is already pretty expensive,” Chen said. “The extra four percent fee only makes the AP tests more expensive.”

On another note, Hew claims that though there have been a few negative feelings about the online registration, students always have the option of doing the registration on paper.

“There have been students who have indicated that they did not want to pay the four percent fee to order their tests online, you do have the option of doing it on paper,” Hew said. “That is why it is called a convenience fee — you can do it from the comfort of your home, with your parents.”